Drug Discovery Platform Peptris Raises Rs 70 Cr in Series A Round
•February 18, 2026
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Companies Mentioned
Why It Matters
The funding validates AI‑driven drug discovery as a scalable solution to high R&D costs, offering pharma partners faster, lower‑risk access to novel therapeutics. It also positions Peptris to expand its pipeline and influence treatment options in underserved therapeutic areas.
Key Takeaways
- •Raised Rs 70 cr ($7.7 m) Series A.
- •AI platform generates novel molecules, predicts development parameters.
- •Funds to push pipelines to clinical readiness within 24 months.
- •Targets rare diseases, oncology, inflammation, women’s health.
- •B2B model licenses assets to pharma, biotech partners.
Pulse Analysis
Artificial intelligence is reshaping early‑stage drug discovery by automating molecule design and forecasting key pharmacokinetic attributes. Traditional pre‑clinical programs suffer from high attrition, long timelines, and escalating costs, prompting investors to back platforms that can de‑risk candidates before costly animal studies. Peptris leverages generative models to propose novel chemical entities while simultaneously predicting solubility, toxicity, and manufacturability, thereby shortening the hypothesis‑testing cycle and conserving capital.
The Rs 70 crore Series A injection arrives at a moment when venture capital is gravitating toward biotech ventures that embed data science at their core. Co‑lead investors IAN Alpha Fund and Speciale Invest see Peptris’ dual capability—creating new molecules and rescuing shelved drugs—as a differentiator that can generate licensable assets quickly. The funding earmarked for expanding biology, chemistry, data‑science and AI teams will enable the startup to launch multiple NCE programs and accelerate existing repurposing projects toward IND filings within two years, aligning with industry pressure to deliver therapies faster.
For pharmaceutical and biotech partners, Peptris offers a B2B model that reduces the upfront risk of internal discovery programs. By licensing AI‑derived candidates or co‑developing them, partners can tap into innovative pipelines without bearing the full cost of early research. Focusing on rare diseases, oncology, inflammation, and women’s health—areas with high unmet need—positions Peptris to address market gaps while delivering value to patients and healthcare systems. As AI continues to mature, platforms like Peptris are likely to become integral components of the drug development ecosystem, driving efficiency and expanding therapeutic options.
Drug discovery platform Peptris raises Rs 70 Cr in Series A round
Drug discovery company Peptris has raised Rs 70 crore ($7.7 million) in a Series A funding round co-led by IAN Alpha Fund and Speciale Invest along with participation from Tenacity Ventures, BYT Ventures, and other investors.
The fresh capital will be used to advance its existing programs toward clinical readiness and to expand its pipeline over the next 24 months, and enhance teams across biology, chemistry, data science, and AI, Peptris said in a press release.
Co-founded in 2019 by Narayanan Venkatasubramanian , Shridhar Narayanan, Anand Budni, and Amit Mahajan, Peptris has created AI models to generate novel molecules and predict varied parameters that are critical to reduce failures in drug development. The approach has led to the discovery of Novel Chemical Entities (NCE), drug repurposing and rescue opportunities.
According to the Bengaluru-based company, it addresses persistent problems in healthcare despite scientific advances, drug discovery remains slow, expensive, and failure-prone, leaving large unmet medical needs. This challenge is most acute in the pre-clinical stage, where time, capital, and scientific uncertainty often derail promising programs much before drugs reach the clinical stage.
Peptris says that its platform not only generates novel molecules but also helps predict critical drug development parameters early. This enables faster and better-informed decision-making and has already resulted in the discovery of Novel Chemical Entities (NCEs) as well as drug repurposing and rescue opportunities, with multiple programs now advancing towards clinical development.
The company plans to initiate several new NCE programs, alongside multiple drug repurposing and rescue programs (shelved clinical stage drugs of other companies). It follows a B2B engagement model, working closely with pharma, biotech, and select FMCG partners to license assets and co-develop programs. The startup focuses on therapeutic areas including rare diseases, inflammation, oncology, and women’s health to deliver a durable impact for patients, caregivers, and healthcare systems globally.
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